Sliding box cover



Dec. 22, 1953 J. E. SHAFFER SLIDING BOX COVER .2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FiledJuly 10, 1950 249 2? /7 Mr T I R. 3 mf wf E n m J 1 0 v .2

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ATI'D RN EYS Dec. 22, 1953 J. E. SHAFFER 2,663,457

SLIDING BOX COVER Filed July 10, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 AT'I'D RN EYSPatented Dec. 22, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT 2,663,457 "SLIDING BOXoo'viin John E. Shaffer, Brandon-Fm. Application Juiy'lo, 1950, Serialmeme 2 claims. 01. 220 41) tamination, theclo'sure'me'mber including alid "that can be moved in o'rder't'o permit the contents 'Ofthe cartonto be readily dispensed.

Another object of the invention is to provide "a closure member forboxes'or cartons containing such things'as flour, soap powder, or othermaterials, the closure member including a transparent window or lidwhich' permits the user to observe the contents of the carton,'the'closure member serving to prevent'moisture, dust, or other foreignmaterial from contaminating the coni tents of the'car-ton, the closuremember also serving to prevent Wasting or spilling of the material inthecarton.

A further object of the invention is to provide a closure member or boxwhich is extremely simple and inexpensive to manufacture.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent during the course of thefollowing description.

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this application, and inwhich like numerals are used to designate like parts throughout thesame:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of the closure member of the-presentinvention; 7 Figure 2 is a sectional view taken on the line 52- 2 ofFigure 1 7 Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2, butwith thetransparent lid or window in open position;

Figure 4 is a sectional View taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a sectional view taken on the line '5-5 of Figure 2;

Figure 6- is a top plan view of the closure member, with parts brokenaway and in section, and showing the lid in open position.

Referrin in detail to the drawings, the numeral I0 designates aconventional box or carton or receptacle which may contain flour,cereal, soap powder, or other materials. The present invention isdirected to a closure member which is adapted to be positioned or placedover the top of the carton I!) after the cover has been out on orotherwise removed from the carton. The carton I0 is conventional andincludes a bottom wall I l, spaced parallel side walls 12 and I3, andend walls 14 and I5.

The emsureme'ms offtheprsent rearms}; may be fabricateclef any bl'einater'ialfsuich as plastic, and the closure'ineinhr'ihcliidesatop walll6 whichi'spr'ovid'ed'withare angpiaro enjme n through whichthecoiitentsof the ca [U can be'disch and [9,Fig1iie'4, andthese' s'i de'fiaiiges f are adapted to 'sn g1yengage ltliefexter face of thesidewalls n and f3 ofthfe Also depending from the top wall [6 isaspacedparallel endflanges'i'fl'and 2 l w niigly engage the upper 'e'kerioi'portions or the end walls I4 and IJoft li'e cartonflh, v

Projecting aw-rel froin'thefside fiari g ef 4 rib 22, there'beiifg neara3 priijb "s'ide an}??? iv A a or 11 1 '25 ich. isia" parent material,s' h s a The id 25isf 7 v of closing relation w1th'resp he l1. When thelid 25 is in itsclosed pfl's n,"'a"s shown in Figure 2, the .user ,canreadily b'se'rve the, amount of "material in the carton 'l 0, since the11 25 is transparent, 'whe nearest-s 6: 'the c'arton are '1' throughAlso, a means is provided for maintaining the lid 25 in its closedposition, so that accidental opening of the lid is prevented. This meansincludes a small socket 21 which is arranged in the under surface of thetop wall I6, Figure 3, and the socket 21 is adapted to frictionallyreceive therein a protuberance 28 which is arranged on the lid 25. Thus,when the lid 25 is in its closed position, as shown in Figure 2, theprotuberance 28 is seated in the socket 21, but by exerting a slightpressure on the lid 25 by means of the finger-engaging cutout 26, theprotuberance 28 can be readily worked loose from the socket 21.

The closure member of the present invention further includes a pluralityof spaced spring fingers or prongs 29 which are adapted to enga the sideand end walls of the carton In so as to maintain the closure memberimmobile on the carton after it has been placed thereon.

In use, the top is cut or torn off of the carton or receptacle Iii. Thenthe closure member of the present invention is placed over the cartonH1. With the closure member in position over or on the carton it, itwill be seen that the spring fingers 29 engage the walls of the cartonto maintain the closure member in its proper position on the carton.Also, the side flanges l8 and i and end flanges 20 and 2| engage thewalls of the carton so that the contents of the carton will bemaintained free from dust, moisture or other contamination. Normally,the transparent lid,

25 is in the position shown in Figures 1 and 2, so that no contaminationcan enter the inside of the carton. Also, with the transparent lid 25 inthe closed position shown in Figures 1 and 2, the user can readilyobserve the amount of material in the carton, since the lid is oftransparent material. To dispense the contents of the carton, or anyportion thereof, the user merely places his finger in engagement withthe cutout 26 and then slides the lid 25 from the position shown inFigures 1 and 2 to the position shown in Figures 3 and 6, so that thecontents of the carton can be dispensed or emptied through the dischargeopening I! in the top wall 16. When the lid '25 is in its closedposition, the socket 21 and protuberance 28 serve to prevent accidentalopening of thelid.

The closure member of the present invention is adapted to cover boxesafter the tops have been removed. The boxes may contain flour, cereal,soap powder, and the like. The closure member can be made of plastic orany other suitable material. The closure member is constructed so thatthe user may cut 011 the original box to and place the closure member ofthe present invention on the box. The closure member will seal the boxtightly, preventing dampness, dust, or other foreign matter fromentering the box, thereby providing greater sanitation. Also, the boxwill be neat and attractive. As the contents of the box are used, thebox or carton may be out down so that the closure member of the presentinvention can he slipped on again, thus saving space in cupboards.

I claim:

1. A closure member for an open-topped box including side walls and endwalls comprisin a top wall provided with a discharge opening, a pair ofspaced parallel end flanges depending from said top Wall for engagementwith the exterior surface of the end walls of said box, a pair of spacedparallel side flanges depending from said top wall for engagement withthe exterior surface of said side walls, a plurality of spring fingersintegral withand projecting from said closure member for engagement withthe walls of said box, ribs spaced below said top wall and extendingfrom the opening to the end wall of the box remote from the opening andcoactin with the top wall and the top of the spring fingers to define atrackway, a transparent lid slidably arranged in said trackway andmounted for movement into and out of engagement with said opening withthe said spring fingers serving to engage and support the lid in closedposition with relation to the said opening, and coacting means on saidtop wall and lid for preventing accidental opening of said lid.

2. A closure member for an open-topped box including side walls and endwalls comprising a top wall provided with a discharge opening, a

pair of spaced parallel end flanges depending from said top wall forengagement with the exterior surface of the end walls of said box, apair of spaced parallel side flanges depending from said top wall forengagement with the exterior surface of said side walls, a plurality ofspring fingers integral with and projecting from said closure member forengagement with the walls of said box, ribs spaced below said top walland extending from the opening to the end wall of the box remote fromthe opening and coactin with the top wall and the top of the springfingers to define a trackway, a transparent lid slidably arranged insaid trackway and mounted for movement into and out of engagement withsaid opening with the said spring fingers serving to engage and supportthe lid in closed position with relation to the said opening, coactingmeans on said top wall and lid for preventing accidental opening of saidlid, there being a finger-engaging cutout in said lid for moving thelatter.

JOHN E. SHAFFER.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 348,713 Baumann Sept. 7, 1886 1,552,325 Loving Sept. 1, 19252,049,228 Sebell July 23, 1936 2,065,908 Pihl Dec. 29, 1936 2,118,099Mirk May 24, 1933 2,133,789 Pool Oct. 18, 1938 2,160,436 Jones May 30,1939 2,235,987 Frank Mar. 25, 1941 2,276,374 Derman Mar. 17, 19422,276,635 Weber Mar. 17, 1942 2,365,888 Lindefelt Dec. 26, 19442,433,587 Wentworth Dec. 30, 1947 2,497,827 Trafton Feb. 14, 1950

